In terms of both its critical and popular reception, Exiles has proven the least successful of all of Joyce's published works.

In making his case for the defence of the play, Padraic Colum conceded: "...critics have recorded their feeling that [Exiles] has not the enchantment of Portrait of the Artist nor the richness of [Ulysses]...

They have noted that Exiles has the shape of an Ibsen play and have discounted it as being the derivative work of a young admirer of the great Scandinavian dramatist.

“The plot is deceptively simple: Richard, a writer, returns to Ireland from Rome with Bertha, the mother of his illegitimate son, Archie.

While there, he meets his former lover and correspondent Beatrice Justice and former drinking partner and now successful journalist Robert Hand.

Bertha's maid informs her of Rowan's departure from the home an hour earlier, as he left for a walk on the strand.

Another source of inspiration used by the author to model the character of Robert Hand was the Italian journalist Roberto Prezioso, which he met during his time in Trieste.

[6] Harold Pinter’s staging of Exiles in 1970 received greater praise, with many critics claiming that the play had been “revived.”[7] A 2006 production directed by James Macdonald at the National Theatre also enjoyed a positive reception.

[8][9] Some critics have claimed that Exiles may have been reviewed poorly in its time due to Joyce’s progressive ideas about love and relationships.